Mel Tucker and his candidacy for the Georgia State job
It doesn’t appear Georgia defensive coordinator Mel Tucker will be strongly considered for the vacant head coaching position at Georgia State.
That’s at least according to a person with knowledge of the situation who stated that Tucker’s likely price range is outside of what the Panthers would be willing to pay.
Upon being selected by Georgia head coach Kirby Smart to be his defensive coordinator, Tucker signed a three-year contract for $850,000 per season. It would be a stretch for Georgia State to be able to match that amount.
Former Georgia State head coach Trent Miles was making just less than $540,000 per season before his firing. It’s believed the Panthers are looking to stay in that range for the next hire.
It’s believed there will be around $1 million available for assistants. For someone like Tucker, who seemingly would command a salary closer to $1 million and has coached previously in the NFL, the Georgia State job is unlikely a position he could put together the kind of staff he’d like to.
It was initially reported by USA Today that Tucker was a candidate for the Georgia State job.
The Georgia State Foundation officially acquired Turner Field, the former home of the Atlanta Braves, in early November as an athletics complex to host football and other sports, which cost a total of $22.8 million. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported an additional $26 million could be spent on renovations.
The money spent on that project complicates matters when it comes to its coaching search, unless Georgia State athletics donors are willing to contribute additional funds to the program.
While Georgia State may not be a possibility for Tucker, there is a chance he is sought by other college programs or by NFL organizations.
In his first season at Georgia, Tucker’s unit ranked 16th nationally in total defense (328 yards per game), 19th in passing yards allowed (186.9) and 40th in scoring defense (24.1 points per game).
This story was originally published November 30, 2016 at 9:42 AM with the headline "Mel Tucker and his candidacy for the Georgia State job."